IPL’s Rajasthan Royal players in great demand

The players from Team Jaipur, the winners of the first IPL season, were in great demand as the month-long transfer window opened on Tuesday.

With franchisees looking for cost-effective performers, it is learnt that players like Shane Watson, Yusuf Pathan, Swapnil Asnodkar, Mohammad Kaif, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Salunke, Munaf Patel and Siddarth Trivedi are on the wish list – ‘expression of interest’ category – of most teams.

Of course, the big question is: will Jaipur be interested in trading its champions? Team Jaipur sources said that none of the players are being included in the ‘available to trade’ window as of now.

“Since some of our players were auctioned at a relatively lower price and they eventually became the IPL winners, other franchises are obviously showing interest in them,” a well-placed Jaipur source said.

The window will be open for a month and it remains to be seen whether Jaipur will be tempted to sell its players to make some money.

“Some of the franchisees are saying that Watson is not happy with his salary slab and he may be interested in a transfer. But if his owner is not willing to trade him or give him a hike, what can Watson do?” another team official said.

On the flip side, the team which suffered the maximum ignominy in the IPL – Bangalore Royal Challengers – had announced on Monday that they would be trading four foreign cricketers.

Sources in the Bangalore team said that Dale Steyn, Misbah-ul-Haq, Cameron White and Nathan Bracken are the four cricketers who would be up for grabs.

As for the other teams, Delhi Daredevils are in need of a fast bowler, but they are keeping the cards close to their chest.

Kolkata Knight Riders are looking for a middle-order batsman in Number 5 and 6 positions while Team Chennai are on the hunt for a couple of fast bowlers.

Team Hyderabad wants to rebuild around Adam Gilchrist and Rohit Sharma, which means they could sign quite a few new players. It is something which even the Mumbai Indians are looking at.

According to Team Chandigarh sources, they are happy with the balance.

Most of the franchisees are looking beyond the transfer window. They are willing to wait and get the best out of next year’s auction in February.

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IPLPulse.com is all about Indian Premier League and Champions League Twenty20. It provides complete information on Indian Premier League (IPL) T20 Cricket and Champions League Twenty20. IPL Pulse covers live updated scores, cricket news, articles, player profiles, features and forthcoming IPL Edition.